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Someone’s past does not disqualify one from salvation or
service. Do you agree with that
statement? Well, we probably all agree
with that in theory, but in practice we are quick to think or even say, “I have
heard about him/her. I doubt he/she will
ever come to the Lord.” Or, we may think
something like, “Sure, you can join the church, but you will never be allowed
to do this/that.”

Many of us think we have it all figured out. Maybe we have served the Lord for years and
have forgotten how immature or sinful we were in our early years as
Christians. Maybe we were raised in the
church and have not committed the “major” or open sins that get so much
negative attention. Let me remind you
that none of us are perfect. Even those
of us who have been raised in church and have not committed publicly shameful
deeds, do we think that we are better than others? What if the sins of your heart were
exposed? What if the sins under your
roof, behind closed doors were exposed?
Would you be so innocent anymore?
I think not.

The truth is, we all have a past. We all have had struggles with sin and
continue to fight the “flesh,” that is, the old, sinful nature. We all are in need of a savior, the Savior,
Jesus Christ. Let me encourage you to
not only affirm that first sentence in theory but also in practice: Someone’s
past does not disqualify one from salvation or service. How can we believe this? The Father made Christ, who knew no sin, to
be sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Our past is done away with when we commit to
God by faith in Jesus Christ. He
forgives us our sins and removes them from our account.

So then, when we consider this passage of Scripture in
Acts 9. Many of us think of others in
the same way that Ananias’ first reacted to an urging to minister to Saul of
Tarsus, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done
to Your saints in Jerusalem.” What
Ananias said was true. His fear was
legitimate. But that did not stop the
Lord from saving Saul and using Ananias as an evangelistic tool to minister to
him. The Lord told Ananias to “Go.” Saul’s horrific sins of his past would not
haunt him in the future; they would not keep the Lord from saving him or
calling him into His service. The Lord
said “Go,” and Ananias “Went.” When we
sense the urging of the Lord to minister to someone, we, too, should not reject
them based on their appearance or their past.
Instead, we should minister to them and make them disciples. The Lord will extend the offer of salvation
to them in the Gospel message, and, if they respond with faith, the Lord will
call them into His service. He did the
same for you and for me, why not any other person?